Shop art print and framed art The Stages of Life by Caspar David Friedrich

The Ages of Life (in German: Die Lebensstufen) is a painting by the German Romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich, produced in 1834. It is currently housed in the Museum of Fine Arts in Leipzig. Painted at the age of 61, six years before his death, it was a mature, artistic and personal work that C.D. Friedrich exhibited to the public that year. For this landscape, however, he drew inspiration from several sketches he had made on his travels in his youth. With his melancholic style and the imposing spiritual symbolism he imbued his canvases with, Friedrich created landscapes that are now considered to be among the most masterful in the history of art. But while he was most often inspired by places linked to his personal history, The Ages of Life seems to be an exception, since the painting depicts an imaginary place. It is possible, however, that he was inspired to some extent by the port of Greifswald, the place where he was born. The painting is divided into two planes. In the first, five people are standing on a beach. Further out, five boats are sailing at varying distances. On the beach, the figure closest to the viewer is an old man standing with his back to the sea. In front of him stands a young man wearing a top hat. Further away, a young girl is lying on the shore playing with two children. The two children are playing with a Swedish flag next to her. The figures have been interpreted by the art historian Börsch-Supan as follows: the elderly man is C.D. Friedrich [...]

 

This artwork is a painting from the classical period. It belongs to the romanticism style.

 

« The Stages of Life » is kept at Museum of Fine Arts, Leipzig, Germany.

 

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